Editing Sonora (section)

==Mexico-United States border==
[[File:USMexicoborder.jpg|thumb|Aerial photograph of the United States-Mexican border, running diagonally from left to right, between Nogales, Arizona, United States, and Nogales, Sonora, Mexico (upper right)]]{{See also|Mexico–United States border}}
Sonora's border with the United States is {{Convert|588|km|mi}} long,<ref name="mediofisico"/> and runs through desert and mountains, from the western [[Chihuahuan Desert]], through an area of grasslands and oak mountain areas to the [[Sonoran Desert]] west of [[Nogales, Sonora|Nogales]]. The area gets drier from here west and the last third of the border is generally uninhabited. There are six official border crossings. From east to west these at [[Agua Prieta]], [[Naco, Sonora|Naco]], Nogales, [[Sasabe Port of Entry|Sasabe]], [[Sonoyta]] and [[San Luis Río Colorado]]. In populated areas, much of the border is marked by corrugated metal walls, but most of the rest is marked by barbed wire fence and border monuments.<ref name="griffith">{{cite web |url= http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/migrations/bord/azsb.html |title= The Arizona-Sonora Border: Line, Region, Magnet, and Filter |first= James S. |last= Griffith |work= Borders and Identity |publisher= Smithsonian Institution |location=Washington, DC |access-date=February 15, 2011}}</ref>

Like others in the world, the border is a culture unto itself, not belonging 100% to either country. Interaction between the peoples on both sides is a part of both the culture and the economy. In the 1980s, an international [[volleyball]] game was regularly held near Naco, with the chain link border fence serving as the net. Much of Arizona and Sonora share a cuisine based on the wheat, cheese and beef that was introduced to the region by the Spaniards, with wheat [[tortilla]]s being especially large on both sides of the border. This diet is reinforced by the vaquero/cowboy tradition which continues in both states.<ref name="griffith"/> The six border crossings are essential to the existence and extent of the communities that surround them, as most of them function as ports for the passage of goods between the two countries.<ref name="eller">{{cite web |url= http://ebr.eller.arizona.edu/arizona_border_region/AZ_demographic.asp |title= Arizona-Sonora Region – Population |publisher= Eller College of Management University of Arizona |year= 2011 |location= Tucson, AZ |access-date= February 15, 2011 |archive-date= May 11, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110511181533/http://ebr.eller.arizona.edu/arizona_border_region/AZ_demographic.asp }}</ref> People regularly shop and work on the other side, taking advantage of opportunities there.<ref name="griffith"/> The economic opportunities of the border are not equal on both sides. Most of the population along this border lives on the Sonoran side, many of which have moved here for the opportunities created by the maquiladoras and other businesses. These are lacking on the Arizona side.<ref name="eller"/>

The border has separated the region's indigenous populations, such as the [[Tohono O'odham]]. While members of the Tohono O'odham have special border crossing privileges, these have become endangered as Mexican farmers encroach on tribal lands in Sonora, which are vulnerable to drug smugglers. Yaquis in Arizona travel south to the [[Yaqui River]] area for festivals, especially [[Holy Week in Mexico|Holy Week]], and Yaquis travel north to Arizona for cultural reasons as well. When [[Father Kino]] arrived in this area, he named much of it the Pimería Alta, as Pima territory extends from the highlands of eastern Sonora up towards [[Tucson]].<ref name="griffith"/>

Authorities on each side work to keep out from the other that which is undesirable. For the United States, this mostly involves drugs and illegal immigrants. For Mexico, this mostly involves struggling against the importation of untaxed goods, especially automobiles. Smuggling people and drugs into the United States is big business in Mexico, but while it affects everyone living on the border, it is generally not seen, except for occasional newspaper headlines, occasional violent crime and religious articles geared to those in the trade. Illegal crossings taking place through tunnels, hidden cars and trucks or most commonly, simply passing through a gap in the fence, especially in the more remote areas. In 1990, a tunnel linking two warehouses in Agua Prieta and [[Douglas, Arizona]] was discovered. It was sophisticated with hydraulic equipment and means to move large quantities of goods. At least three [[corrido]]s have been written about this tunnel.<ref name="griffith"/>